Many historians consider this event a crucial point in American history, the turning point that determined that the fledgling United States would become a republic, not a monarchy. At that time, the nation was governed by the Articles of Confederation, and Washington had made it clear that he intended to return to his beloved Mount Vernon as a private citizen.
Less than four years later, in May 1787, the leaders of the young nation met again to revise the Articles of Confederation because they had not provided for a sufficiently strong central government to keep the country from descending into chaos. Instead, the delegates ended up drafting an entirely new document, the Constitution of the United States. Among its provisions are the election of a chief executive, the President, a bicameral Congress, and an independent judiciary.
The discussions of the Constitutional Convention were secret, but we have records that indicate that Alexander Hamilton, for one, made long and detailed arguments in favor of a republican government rather than a monarchy. Both Alexander Hamilton and James Madison advocated for the President to be chief executive for life, but the delegates ultimately decided against that.
Hamilton writes to the New-York Evening Post discussing monarchy versus republic
NARA’s Founders Online
Hamilton’s plan presented to the convention
NARA’s Founders Online
Article I Section 9 of the Constitution also formally forbids the establishment of royalty in the United States: “No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States: and no person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state.”
At Mount Vernon in Virginia, George Washington was not surprised when he received word that he had been chosen to be the first President of the United States. He was rather reluctant to serve, but he felt it was his duty, so on April 30, 1789, he took the oath of office on the balcony of New York City’s City Hall. He set another precedent by leaving the presidency after serving two terms—although, truth be told, he was barely persuaded to stick it out for a second term. He released his farewell address to the public on September 19, 1796, even though John Adams was not inaugurated as the second President until March 4 of the next year.
George Washington’s farewell address
NARA’s Founders Online
The original wording of the Constitution does not set term limits for the President—it only states that a term is four years long. Other Presidents followed Washington’s precedent until Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected for a record four terms, from 1932 until 1944. He died in office on April 12, 1945 of a cerebral hemorrhage.
The twenty-second amendment to the Constitution permanently set George Washington’s two-term precedent in stone. It was ratified on February 27, 1951.
Berryman cartoon, “Untitled”–against the third term of President Teddy Roosevelt
National Archives Identifier: 306175
Letter to FDR in support of a third term
National Archives Identifier: 26080948
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